Putin war 'costs 25,000 Russian lives'

Ukraine winning, says Britain as Nato meets to plan huge boost to defence

- David Bond

VLADIMIR PUTIN has lost 25,000 troops during his invasion of Ukraine, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace claimed today, as Russia becomes bogged down in a "World War One-style" war of attrition.

The minister told of the huge casualties being suffered by Mr Putin's forces as Nato leaders gathered in Madrid for a crucial summit which is set to agree more support for Ukraine and sign off plans to significantly boost the Western alliance's defences against Russia.

But faced by questions on whether the Kremlin was achieving its military objectives in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine - now the focal point of the war - Mr Wallace insisted: "I would still say the Ukrainians are winning.

"They are extracting huge amounts of cost from the Russian armed forces, 25,000 Russians, we think, have been killed in that fight... Russia has failed on all its major objectives." Speaking later on BBC Radio 4's Today Programme, he added that Russia is "taking its ground at almost World War One-levels of advance... metres not miles or kilometres a day at huge loss".

In a further dig at the Kremlin's leader, Mr Wallace also took aim at President Putin, personally accusing him of having "small man syndrome".